Blackpool's Kyle Joseph reflects on the season so far and discusses the improvements he's enjoyed in his own personal game.
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00:00How much have you enjoyed this season? I'm sure it's what you dreamed of on a personal level playing week in, week out last year.
00:06Yeah, no, I've really enjoyed it. Like you say, it's what I've wanted since I've come to the club.
00:12I finally got myself fit into a good place physically, mentally and obviously since the manager's come in, he's shown real good trust in me.
00:19It's about repaying that trust and repaying the faith he's shown in me.
00:23Is that show a positive a long summer can have? Because you got back in pre-season training dead early. You were doing individual stuff before you came back here.
00:30I'm a big believer in doing bits away from Blackpool, away from work. I just wanted to really put myself in a good position coming back to help myself have a good season.
00:40I've had a really tough time last year in terms of wasn't playing as much as I liked. Was I playing in the right position? Probably not.
00:47So it was really important for me to come back and really stake my claim and make myself on the team sheet for the first game of the season.
00:55He was always conscious that you had missed last summer to get that summer in. Even when you came back, maybe you weren't playing consistently because you were still finding your feet because you'd missed so much.
01:04Yeah, it was really tough. I think when you miss that full pre-season and then you come back and get injured again, it was difficult.
01:13I had lads who were miles ahead of me in terms of fitness and stuff, so I was trying to catch up with them whilst also still trying to play games and stuff like that.
01:20I found it tough last year in terms of trying to catch that fitness up. But I think the summer really done me well, done me nicely.
01:28I think I had a good long hard look at myself in the mirror and accepted that I wasn't good enough last year in terms of my fitness and where I was at.
01:37But I knew that I had a chance to make it right and I feel like I've done that over the summer and it's about finding consistency.
01:42That's one thing that I've really been striving for this year, to be consistent in terms of the way I play, in terms of what I give and in terms of getting goals and assists.
01:50You mentioned you wanted to play in a position that you feel most natural in. Is that important, being fit?
01:55Because you can give your all and you're not being put into other positions thinking you can fill in there.
01:59Yeah, massively. Obviously, when you're fully fit, you can show your best in your best position.
02:03I think when you're not, it's more trying to shoehorn you in, trying to see where you can get comfortable.
02:07That's down to me as well. I think I could have come back in a lot better way when I was injured.
02:15But that's in the past now. I like to put it behind me. It's something that's happened and it was a real good learning curve for me in terms of how I look after myself.
02:23In terms of when I was injured, what did I do? Was I doing the right stuff?
02:27That was a big eye-opener for me to try and kick on this season and make sure I make it a good one.
02:32Do you think fans are seeing you in a new way now? Are you seeing football at Bloomfield Royal in a new way that you are every week?
02:39Yeah, massively. I think fans are probably seeing me in a different way now in terms of they see me playing consistently.
02:45They see the type of player that I am and what I give. That's massive. I've always been a player that likes to build a connection with fans.
02:52The fans are massive for us, especially here. I've had it in games last season where we played Bolton at home and how good the atmosphere was.
02:59That's massive. It plays a massive part to the lads on the pitch. It gives you that mentality to really try and strive for more and try and get better and try and win games.
03:08That's massive. Playing this year, playing every game so far this season, it's massive.
03:15It shows the trust that the staff have in me and also the confidence that I've got in myself.
03:20In the summer, as there often is, there were rumours around your future that you were linked with and moved away a couple of times.
03:25Was there anything ever in that or was your focus just purely on what's going on here?
03:29No, to be fair, there was a transfer window in the summer. Everything happens. There's news everywhere.
03:35My sole objective was to come back and make sure wherever I am, I'm in the team on the first game of the season and make sure that happens consistently throughout the course of the season.
03:45There was interest in the summer. Was I settled? Probably not. There was a bit of unrest where I just didn't feel like I was really going to get the best out of me here.
03:56But then, obviously, everything happens for a reason. It didn't come off for one reason or another.
04:00Then the new manager came in and I couldn't be happier. It's a funny game, football. You can go from one feeling to another so quickly.
04:09I look back at it now and I think it was a time where I showed resilience, I stayed strong, came in, done my work and just tried to improve as much as possible.
04:20Obviously, with the change of staff, that's really helped me develop my game and I'm loving life under it now.
04:26Did that change of staff and the timing of it as well really change the direction your season could have gone in?
04:31A matter of weeks or days, could you have been somewhere else playing for someone else?
04:34I don't think so. I think the club showed a lot of faith in me to keep me, to try and develop me.
04:40They really showed belief in me and I appreciate that from the club because it's massive.
04:43For a player, I didn't have a great season. I understand that.
04:46They really stood by me. They really said, we really do believe in you.
04:51That was massive for me. Obviously, with the change of staff when that happened, there was a bit of unrest in terms of it.
04:57I think that's for everyone really. They're not sure where they stand and stuff.
05:00From the day they walked in, they were brilliant with me. They've really helped me to try and develop my game.
05:05It shows in the trust that they've got in me to play every game this season.
05:10For me, that's all I've ever wanted as a footballer. I think that's all anyone ever wanted.
05:15It's to try and repay that faith and repay that trust.
05:18Do you feel like it was a new opportunity? You thought this had come at the perfect time for you after last season?
05:22Yes, 100 per cent. It came at the perfect time.
05:24It was a new opportunity for me to really get a lot of games under my belt and get developing and learning again really.
05:32Enjoying my football, I think that's massive. I think you can see it now. I'm really enjoying my football.
05:36I love playing. I love coming in every day.
05:38Whereas last season, I probably missed that a little bit for one reason or another.
05:43I want to ask you about a celebration a few months ago now against Burton.
05:46You and Jordan Gabriel ran over to the fans, didn't they?
05:49That was quite recognisable with the previous manager, so talk me through that.
05:53No, that was just a bit of a laugh between me and Jordan.
05:55But that's never again because we didn't win for another seven after that, so that won't be happening any time soon.
06:01But no, that was just a bit of fun between me and Jordan.
06:03Have you been dying to get involved in that? I see how much fun it was with managers across the country.
06:07No, it was just something that Jordan said to me about doing.
06:10I wasn't even initially going to do it, and then everyone started getting up and around about it.
06:14I thought, I'll do it now. I was going to do it once and then after that.
06:18I didn't have many opportunities to do it again, so now I'm like, right, I'm not doing that ever again.
06:22Yeah, avoid to be on the safe side.
06:24I'll be on the safe side now.
06:26We mentioned obviously this club's success in play-offs, your ambitions for the season,
06:31not wanting to move the season to pitter out.
06:33There's a photo behind you of the last time.
06:35How much would it mean to you if you could get things back on track and replicate what this club has done so many times?
06:40Yeah, massively. For me, I'm ambitious.
06:44I want to play in the leagues higher. I want to get to the Championship and do well there.
06:49The club wants to do that also. They've done it a few years ago.
06:52They had a good steady time in the Championship, so I think it's about building up to that.
06:56Obviously, we look at – and I think, again, it comes down to consistency,
07:00of how consistent we are will determine whether we get to play or not.
07:04That's why I like to say, take every game as it comes, just one game at a time,
07:07instead of looking too far forward, because it can always build up too much.
07:12For lads, you look at the bigger picture, whereas if you just look at it,
07:15there's a game on a Saturday, let's do everything we can to go and win it.
07:18I feel like that's a better mentality to have, to look at it and be like, right, let's go and attack it.